


The She Wolf and The Little Robin

by FangirlFromDownunder



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: And ending speculation, F/F, I hope people aren't too ooc, I just really like Arya, I just wanted to write about an idea I had ages ago, There are spoilers ahead, This is self indulgence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-29 08:07:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18220478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FangirlFromDownunder/pseuds/FangirlFromDownunder
Summary: The heart works in mysterious ways and can burn with love for longer than known.Arya's first love just happened to also be her last.





	The She Wolf and The Little Robin

Finding children her age in King's Landing was hard enough for the youngest child of the Starks. Even harder was finding those who shared her interests or at least didn't look at her like a complete weirdo. After all, a woman knight was practically unheard of in most places in Westeros. So when she wasn't practising with her needle or taking lessons, Arya was often sneaking around the halls of the castle or the gardens, although the gardens were far less interesting.

It was during her sneaking that she found one of the little birds that Lord Varys had to spy on others for him. So easy to slip around unnoticed, she was too young to raise an eyebrow. Soft brown robes and a muted red sash blending her into the castle, her feet quick enough to have her pass quick enough to not gain interest from the ones she followed. Dark hair styled so she would look like a, be it young, serving girl. Arya saw her hide in places she had never even though of, sneaking between bushes and slipping through windows. The young wolf found herself following the little bird, thinking she was unseen.

But the little bird was more observant than the Stark gave her credit. Elna Waters was not one to be caught without it being in her plan, she had learned much from her time in the streets of the city as well as from her time spent when The Spider took her in, seeking out someone to pass on his teachings and beliefs too should things go belly up. No, the little bird wasn't going to let herself be caught by the little wolf. Especially since the Lions and the Stags hadn't found her either. So she plotted, plotted to be the one to catch the wolf instead of it being the other way around. 

And so the day came Elna would set her plan in motion, sneaking through the halls and keeping her attention on not just what was in front of her but also the one who was stalking her like a cat would their prey. 

Seeing the interesting girl sneak around a corner in the gardens, Arya rushed to follow not wanting to lose sight of her. But when she came around the corner she had disappeared. The wolf wandered into the area slowly, looking around to see where the other girl could have gone to. But to focused on what was in front of her she hadn't thought to check behind her and quickly found herself jumping from the voice that came from behind one of the many bushes in the gardens. 

"While I enjoy our little game of cat and mouse it's hard to tell if I'm the mouse or the cat." The voice was light-hearted and teasing, as the girl came out from behind the plant shortly after. This was the first time Arya got to look at her up close, instead of following from a distance. The bird was lean and thin, it was no surprise she could easily slip into places Arya hadn't thought of. Her eyes were warm but seemed to hold more emotion that most their age would normally have experienced. She moved towards Arya, making a show of taking in her features.

"You're the daughter of Lord Stark, right? Should I curtsy?" Elna said before making a big show of taking up the edges of her tunic and curtsying to the other girl. From watching Arya during her days here Elna had picked up on her not being the most ladylike of the lord's daughters.

Arya couldn't help but smile at the other girls teasing tone, finally someone her age who wasn't so stiff or downright mad. "You know who I am, but I don't know who you are."

"I know most of the people who come to King's Landing." The girl paused, thinking for a moment. Being friends with a Lady could cause issues for her sneaking, but it could also hold benefits of gaining access to her help. "I am Elna Waters. Although some like to call me Little Robin." 

It wasn't hard to see where the nickname came from. The mostly brown attire, along with dark hair and tanned skin, and the red sash around her waist fit the colours of a robin along with her small frame. And being one of Vsrys' birds made it easy to see the connection to the creature. 

Arya nodded, she thought she had heard someone talk about a little robin before but she couldn't be sure. Birds seemed to be popular in Kind's Landing. 

It was from that day that the wolf and the bird would each try and sneak up on each other. Elna was better at it, she'd had more practice and experience in the walls of the castle. But, every now and the Arya took the upper hand. She would Mirror the movements she'd seen cats make, stalking her prey and capturing the bird off guard. 

Slowly the two girls became close, trusting each other with many things. The connection became something more of a friendship than the Robin had planned. But she didn't mind it, Arya was nice and neither really fit in with the society they were in.

This change wasn't lost on Varys. In fact, he monitored it closely fearing what could happen should anything happen to the Stark girl. True, it was wrong to have a favourite among his birds but this was a bird he had found himself. Cold and broken on the streets, starving to death. He couldn't help but see himself in the girl, the capability for great things and yet treated ill by society, tossed to the side. So he picked her up before something horrible could happen to the young girl. She was much like his own child, something he never imagined he'd have. 

And then the girls got closer. Young feelings blossoming. The first young love for both girls. And Varys feared. He feared how people would react, he feared what would happen should one push the other away due to the world around them, he feared his Little Robin being hurt. He wasn't blind to young love, and neither were others. Whether they chose to ignore it or waited to use it later, he was sure others had noticed as well.

But Elna hardly cared. She knew what she was feeling wasn't exactly looked at well. She'd lived the first few years in a brothel, she'd seen the women who would come in and ask for other women before slinking away in shame. But she didn't feel that shame. She was young but smart enough to know that these feelings most likely would not last.

Arya's experience was different. She didn't realise she had a crush on the other girl until much later, mistaking her feelings for a close friendship. And when she did realise her feelings, the world crumbled around her. Her father dead, her sister stuck in King's Landing, her brothers in Winterfell with her mother, Jon at the wall, and her rushed out of the city and forced to hide as a boy. She was told to pretend, go to the wall, find Jon and get home. She didn't have time to think about these feelings. The only times she found herself thinking of the little bird was during her days alone travelling when she missed having her friend by her side and wished she had said something to her about the feelings sooner.

Elna didn't dwell on her feelings either. Kind's Landing falling to chaos with Joffrey Baratheon on the throne she had plenty to listen to. Plenty to tell Varys. She only thought of Arya in the dead of night, when she was alone and couldn't sleep. She wondered what happened to her. Wondered if she was safe. Wondered if she thought of the little bird like the little bird thought of the little wolf. Elna wondered why her feelings did not fade.

It wasn't long after the trial of Lord Tyrion that she fled the city with her custodian, seeking to serve the dragon mother and make her Queen. The Queen was kind, Elna could see why Varys favoured her. She cared for the people. She quickly found herself keeping tabs on how the people felt about Daenerys so she could tell her. She liked this new queen and so did the people. It wasn't long before she found herself offering advice to the queen, like many around the Targaryen did. Elna's advice wasn't useful in terms of war, but to help the people. She held the same ideals as Daenerys' Master of Whispers, but could express them in a different way. A younger way, as someone who was still apart of the people herself.

And so she found herself across the sea, and who she had once called little wolf was not as far as she thought. However, this was not for long as Arya set about returning to the thing she had set out to do. Kill those on her list. Arya was no longer the little wolf, she was no one and yet she was herself. 

The next they met was in Arya's home, Winterfell. Elna's queen had travelled there with Jon Snow to show the northerners she was no threat, that she held their interests at heart. And so they followed her. Her armies, her dragons, her advisors, and even the Little Robin followed her to the north.

Neither Elna nor Arya had expected to see each other again, each deciding to move forward instead of focus on the feelings. And yet here they were, standing before one another as Jon Snow introduced Daenerys Targaryen to the northerners and their new queen. Little was said between the two girls, now much older, in these moments. Simply nodding to each other. They had both changed plenty. Arya a killer and Elna an advisor. And yet, in some ways, they were still the same. The same wolf and bird. It wasn't until later they could properly talk.

Elna found herself jumping, a voice coming from the shadows from someone she hadn't seen. She hadn't even sensed their presence as she had in the past. 

"It seems we've solved out cat and mouse problem, doesn't it?" The questions tone was joking, and yet... there was an edge. The Little Robin tuned, coming to face Arya Stark who had easily snuck up on her. Elna didn't know if she should go and hug Arya, was it appropriate after all these years.

"You've become better at the hunt, Little Wolf." Elna tried not to let the fact that she had been caught off guard show. But the weaver in her voice betrayed her. But was she nervous because of being the mouse now or was she nervous because of the feelings she still harboured for the other girl? Her attire was now dark and militaristic, Elna couldn't help but note that it was the clothes of someone who could be a killer.

Arya glanced up and down, taking in how the girl she was once so close to had changed. Now dressed in fine robes, if still understated and modest, the muted red sash she had once worn replaced with by bright red accents on her warm brown cloak. Arya couldn't help but wonder if this was her first time north. "Does it scare you, Little Robin? Being the prey now." 

Elna paused for a long while, thinking the question over. She though over her life. She had never really let herself be the chased before now, always needing to be the one in control to protect herself and those she cared about. Did it bother her that Arya so easily snuck up on her? How long had she been followed? 

"No," her answer came after a long silence. No, she wasn't scared. She trusted Arya to not harm her. "It is simply something new. I'll need to get used to it won't I." She smiled at her old friend, the longer they stood the more comfortable she became with how Arya had changed. Arya too became used to the new way the other girl held herself, she was proud now. Arya had never thought of Elna as lesser due to her status, but seeing her now standing shoulders back and head held hight it was easy to see her more confident in who she was. And old feelings breath new life.

The two girls stood for a long while before laughing at how serious they had both become. Once young girls who would chase each other through castle halls and now both so serious from the paths life had taken them on, as different as they may have been.

"You must tell me where you went. You disappeared, part of me thought I'd imagined you." The bird spoke with familiarity as the two began to walk through Winterfell not caring where they were heading. Both enjoying this peace together before the storm returned. 

"It's a long story." Arya returned, "as I'm sure yours is. I hear from Jon that your queen trusts your opinions, how exactly did the little robin become so close to a queen."

And so the two talked, Elna more openly than Arya who kept some parts of her journey a secret not sure if she herself was ready to hear them spoken out loud. But soon the peace they were experiencing stopped, as the knight king rode north with his army. 

Both played their parts, Elan keeping the people who could not fight calm and Arya fighting. The war was difficult and hard. But the living won, after many many cold days and nights, the living won. 

And yet not without their losses.

Many died. Many were injured beyond saving. Many lost parts of themselves, both physically and emotionally. And many lost loved ones.

And yet there was no time for greaving, there was barely any time for treating the wounded. It seemed as soon as the dead were dealt with the living marched south and so another war began.

Arya was forced to remain out of the main battle, having lost an eye in the battle with the dead she was still getting used to having half her vision. And so she focused on sneaking through to the back lines where she knew Cersei would be.

With the help of Jamie Lannister Arya succeeded in killing the queen on the Iron Throne. The war ended, and perhaps a time of peace could return.

Jon was made king, Daenerys having died before she could claim the Iron Throne. His true lineage of being a Targaryen himself and his desire for good making him an easy choice to rule, he already had the support of Sansa Stark Queen of the North and the other northerners, and the other kingdoms were quick to follow and bend the knee. It had been a long war and the people were tired, they simply hoped this new king could bring them a small period of peace. 

Arya remained north, the She-Wolf of Winterfell they called her now. She worked alongside her sister to rebuild their home. Elna found herself back in King's Landing, her home as she once saw it. But something wasn't right. They say home is where the heart is, and it wasn't with her anymore. She had once thought of her surrogate father had been the one who made her home, but now even he could see she was alone.

"Your heart is with her you know." He said one evening, knowing what had been plaguing the mind of the one person he considered family.

"What?" Elna was confused. With who? 

"The She Wolf in Winterfell. You don't think I hadn't noticed, do you? It doesn't bother me as it would others, so if you go back to her be careful to make friends."

Elna thought over what he had said that night. He was right of course, her heart did belong to Arya Stark. But would she be accepted for following that fact? By morning she had decided that she had to try.

She sent a raven informing Winterfell that she would be heading north to them and with the help of Varys she packed for her long journey. 

She was greeted by Arya upon arrival, a new patch to cover the wound she had gained in her left eye during the battle with the dead. "And here I thought we'd seen the last of you. Was your journey safe?"

"Safe? Yes. Enjoyable? By the seven, no. Riding a horse for hours on end is not something I want to do anytime soon." Elna rubbed her back to make a show of her discomfort.

"Well, I guess we're stuck with you for a while then." Arya couldn't help but smile at the fact.

"Yes, I suppose you are."

Arya lead the little robin to where she would be staying, letting Elna know she was right next door should she need anything. 

"I do need something, actually. It might be better if we spoke about it privately. If you'd come in?"

And so the girls were left together in the guest room. Arya took a seat at the small table as Elna stood, wringing her hands in an attempt to think of how exactly to explain why she was there. 

"Arya, how do you feel about me?" Elan eventually asked.

"You are my dear friend." Arya shot back. She was lying, not that anyone could tell. She didn't want to address those feelings. It wasn't something people did, it wasn't propper, and to many it was wrong. She had only ever spoken to Sansa about this, she didn't know who else to trust. Sansa quickly understood her sister's predicament, having been there herself, but she had very little advice. Sansa could simply be Arya's shoulder to cry on and someone who could support her with this issue.

"Just a friend?" Elna pushed. She wanted any sign that Arya could be lying, and at all. Maybe she should just say it? Surely Arya couldn't turn her away if she felt the same. "Because my feelings for you run much deeper than that."

"What are you saying?" Arya's voice went soft, whispering. As if anyone would be listening to the two speaking, no one there had any reason to suspect anything,

"I think you know what I'm saying. I must know if you reciprocate. If not I will return to King's Landing and we never have to speak of this again." 

It was a scary ultimatum. Never acknowledging that any of these feelings ever existed. Neither wanted that.

"You know what people will say, don't you?" Arya finally asked after a long period of silence. Arya had never feared what people would say about her in the past, and yet here she was afraid of what they would say if she pursued her feelings. What a strange thing this was.

"Damned what people have to say! My father had people whisper about him, did he care? Not at all. People whisper about Jon, he doesn't seem to care for the most part. I know people talk about your sister, she doesn't care either. So damned what other's have to say. Arya Stark, She Wolf of Winterfell, I love you."

She sat there in shock for a few moments. Elna was right, why should they care about what people had to say about their relationship? Arya was one of the greatest killers in the Seven Kingdoms, who she loved didn't affect that at all.

"Well, I'm glad because I love you too."

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry if people are OOC. I just wanted to get the idea written down finally. I hope you all enjoyed, and are looking forward to the new season like I am.


End file.
